This article originally appeared in the “Goleta Depot Dispatch,” Volume 4, Number 2, Summer 1984. It has been transcribed and preserved here to share the fascinating story of how a piece of Goleta Depot history was rediscovered and restored.
In the summer of 1984, the South Coast Railroad Museum at the Historic Goleta Depot welcomed back an important artifact from its past. The return of the way bill box, an essential tool once used by conductors and station agents, marked a significant moment in the museum’s efforts to preserve and celebrate the history of the Goleta Depot.
In days past, when Goleta Depot served the railroad, a wooden box with a distinctive sloping top hung on the outside of the building, between the baggage room and freight office doors.
This box was used by conductors for depositing way bills at night when the station agent was off duty. Way bills are receipts which record that railroad cars have been left at a given location. The bills show the time and place of delivery, the car identification number, and other information. The Goleta agent was responsible for cars left anywhere within the local yard (e.g., at Ellwood and La Patera), and the way bills were an indispensable record to help him keep track of these cars.
When the station was closed in 1973, the way bill box was removed. Frank Vasquez, Goleta’s last agent, thought that it had been relocated to the Goleta Lemon Association plant, the Valley’s most active shipping point. Amazingly, when we made an exploratory trip to the lemon plant earlier this year, we found the box still hanging on the building wall, where it had apparently been for over a decade!
With the help of Carlo Bottiani, the box was given to the depot by the Lemon Association. After a good sanding and a new coat of paint, Goleta’s way bill box returned to its proper place next to the freight office. Today, our museum docents use the box when tours are given on Sunday afternoons.
The return of the way bill box to the Goleta Depot is a testament to the museum’s ongoing efforts to preserve and honor the rich history of the railroad in Goleta. This small but significant artifact reminds us of the vital role the depot played in the community and the importance of preserving such pieces of history for future generations.
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